Serenity
by Get The Chillz
Summary: Something has been bothering the admiral for the last few days. He hasn't been sleeping, and he's barely eaten anything. It's clear to everyone that something is greatly troubling him, and Verniy plans to find out just what is wrong with her admiral.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own Kantai Collection in any way, shape, or form. I also do not own any of the ships mentioned in the story, as they are all real modern ships.

 **Author's Notes:** _Hey what's going on guys? Jeez this took awhile, but finally I finished my first story! Most of the story itself only took two days, but near the end I got a bad case of writer's block that held me back for quite a long time, so I'm sorry if there is a noticeable difference in writing near the end, or if it seems rushed in any way. Also, since this is my first story I hope it turned out well. I'm still trying to find a writing style that fits me, so it might seem a bit off. Criticism is of course always welcome, but flaming for the sake of flaming is kinda useless…_

 _On another note, I'm surprised just how few stories there are between the Admiral and Verniy. She's rather underrated all things considering in my opinion. I just feel like there is so much potential in Verniy's character that just seems too good to pass up. I also have several other story ideas that involve Verniy that I would love to see, so I might get around to writing more Verniy stories, especially if people like this pairing. As one last note. I was having a hard time deciding whether to include translations in the story or up in the author's notes, but I decided I want to keep the clean flow of the story. I'm sorry if people find it hard to read because of this or find it annoying, but it was the choice I made. So here are the translations in order:_

 **Нет** \- No

 **пожалуйста** \- Please

 **Вы прощены** \- You're forgiven

 **спасибо** \- Thank You

 **Все нормально** \- It's fine/everything is fine

 **Доброй ночи** \- Goodnight

 _These are Google Translate translations, so I'm really sorry if they are wrong._

 **Summary:** Something has been bothering the admiral for the last few days. He hasn't been sleeping, and he's barely eaten anything. It's clear to everyone that something is greatly troubling him, and Verniy plans to find out just what is wrong with her admiral.

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Serenity

One-Shot

~ Get The Chillz ~

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"So you were here, Akio." Came a calm voice. The voice came from a small girl wearing a white and black serafuku and a black skirt. She has long snow white almost silvery hair that flutters gently in the wind. Her ice blue eyes seem to be almost shining from the glow of the sun that is sinking beneath the sea to her right. On her head sits a white and gold cap.

The man before her, named Akio, turns to her with a bit of a start, clearly surprised by his unexpected guest. He stands fairly tall at around six feet with short brown hair, emerald green eyes, and healthy white skin. His face however, shows some signs of exhaustion and lack of sleep hinted at by the bags underneath his eyes. He is wearing an admiralty coat and pants. A lone admiralty cap lies discarded and forgotten against the wall to her left.

Recognizing her immediately, Akio relaxes and chuckles a bit before turning back towards the sea and watching the sun set behind the waves. The entire ocean is afire with a golden glow and causes their surroundings to glow orange that makes everything feel almost otherworldly.

"I just can't get you to call me admiral anymore, can I Verniy?" Akio asks with a chuckle, glancing at her from the corner of his eye. Her name sounded a bit rough on his tongue, like he was unaccustomed to the foreign word. It was only just recently that her admiral decided that he would attempt to learn to speak and understand russian more. He told her that he would love to one day be able to speak to her fluently in her own language. That of course is a large task, but she has never seen him so motivated before, and in truth, the notion alone fills her with indescribable happiness.

"Нет." Verniy says softly with a small smile and a shake of her head.

"I didn't think anyone would find me here, to be honest." He mutters almost to himself.

There is certainly some merit to that thought. It had taken her almost an hour of searching all around the base to find him. No one she asked had seen the admiral anywhere, and he wasn't in any of the buildings on base. Eventually she had found a small alcove behind the main building of the base. It seems that the main building was designed to have two walls on the back corners of the building that extend all the way to the edge of the island. However, she found that the wall on the right side of building does not quite reach the edge and instead leaves a small gap between the wall and the rocky cliffs of the island. This gap leads into an area that runs the length of the building and goes about 2 yards back. The entrance is so far out of the way and easily missed that she is shocked she even noticed it in the first place.

"Care to join me?" Akio asks while flashing her a smile, breaking Verniy out of her thoughts. "I could always use your company."

Verniy nods with a small smile of her own and walks up next to him, and joins him in watching the sunset. The sun is sinking further and further beneath the sea. The sight alone takes her breath away with it's beauty. The warmth of the setting sun permeates through her entire body and the cool summer night wind causes her hair to flutter gently in the wind. Even her skin seems to be glowing from the sun. Glancing to her left, Verniy can see Akio gazing at the sunset with a small peaceful smile on his face, a far cry from his normal demeanor these last few days. She didn't want to be the one to ruin his happy mood, and instead chose to savor this moment together.

Eventually, the sun began to sink lower and lower with only about a quarter of it remaining afloat above the waves. Verniy began to steel her resolve knowing that she needs to get to the bottom of everything. She doesn't want to ruin this peaceful moment between them, but she can't stand to see Akio like this any longer either. These last few days have been hard on her seeing Akio in so much pain, but remaining unable to do anything to help him. She wants to see him smiling and happy again like he always is, or see him trying so hard to learn russian just for her sake. She wants _her_ Akio back. Nodding one last time to herself, she turns to face the man to her left.

"Akio…" Verniy hesitates for a moment unsure on how to go about this, before deciding to just get to the point. "What is wrong with you lately?"

Akio freezes for a moment, his smile faltering. "I don't-"

"пожалуйста!" Verniy interrupts, sounding almost desperate, "Please... don't avoid the question."

Showing no intention of answering, Verniy decides to press further, "Please. Please tell me what's wrong. These last few days you haven't been yourself. you've haven't slept at all in the last two days, you barely eat anything at meal times, and it is clear as day that something is causing you pain. All the girls are worried about you. I'm worried about you…" Verniy trails off after her small speech.

Akio on the other hand is staring at her in surprise. Verniy has always been more lively and talkative around him. The normally stoic girl would often smile around him and laugh in such a way that would cause any man's heart to melt. He took no small amount of pride and joy in the fact that she would only behave like that around him. However, even then she would never express herself in too many words. In never bothered Akio too much though. It was one of the many things that he loved about her. The thought that he must have been worrying her that much made his heart clench in guilt. He sighed in a long drawn out way as if preparing himself before turning back to the sea.

"I've caused you some pain by making you worry about me so much. I'm sorry Verniy." Akio says softly. Feeling a small tug on his right sleeve he glances down to see Verniy holding on to his sleeve and smiling up at him gently.

"Вы прощены." She says gently.

Akio smiles back down at her, "спасибо.".

Verniy's smile widens at his response. Akio once again turns back to face the sea. Verniy notices him reaching up to clasp the chain necklace around his neck with his free hand. She has noticed it many times as it seems he prefers to wear it at all times; However whenever one of the girls would ask about it, he would just vaguely answer it was from someone important to him. It was one of the many mysteries surrounding their admiral. Some of the girls even think that it was a gift from an old girlfriend or lover from back before the war with the Abyssals started. The thought always made her heart clench painfully.

"You've been with me on this base for almost seven months now, right Verniy? In that case I suppose you wouldn't know about this, not that I openly talk about it anyway." Akio speaks as he turns and begins walking towards the back wall forcing Verniy to relinquish her grip on his sleeve. He sits down with his back to the wall before smiling charmingly at Verniy and patting the ground to his right. "Come on, sit with me. Please?"

Verniy nods and walks over and then slides down the wall next to him. Taking off her cap and placing it next to Akio's cap, she then begins to curl herself up against Akio's side, leaning her head against his shoulder and curling up her legs beneath her. After she finishes making herself comfortable, Verniy glances up at Akio as if urging him on.

"Comfortable?" Akio chuckles as he watches her, bringing his hand up to gently tuck some stray hairs behind her ears. This was a precious side of Verniy that she would only show to him, and it was something that he deeply cherished.

"Yes." Verniy whispers almost shyly. Akio couldn't keep the grin off his face. She could be so cute sometimes.

"Alright. Where to start?" Akio mutters to himself. Unconsciously he reaches to grab his necklace once again, which does not go unnoticed by Verniy. "Do you know what day today is Verniy?"

Verniy stares up at Akio quizzically for a moment before shaking her head.

Akio chuckled sadly, "Yeah I figured you wouldn't. Today is the three year anniversary of the day the Abyssals attacked." Verniy's eyes widened at this piece of information.

"I was a captain in the JMSDF at the time." Akio continued on, "I was assigned to the Shirane-class Helicopter Destroyer, JDS Kurama. I was one of the youngest officers ever to be promoted to the rank of Captain and given command of a ship, though I'm sure my father had some pull in that decision." Akio chuckled forlornly.

"Your father?" Verniy questions quietly, not wanting to interrupt him. He never talked much about his life before the war, so this was quickly capturing her interest. Akio just smiles sadly at her while stroking her hair, cherishing the feeling of her hair running across his fingers.

"Yeah, my father. He was a long time military man. He was a Vice Admiral in the JMSDF. Growing up I always wanted to be just like him. That's why I joined the naval academy right out of high school." Akio paused. He then reached up and undid the clasp of his chain necklace and took it off and held it out in his palm for Verniy to see. "You girls always question me about this necklace right? My dad gave this necklace to me on the day of my promotion to captain. He told me that his father gave that very same necklace to him, and that now it was my turn to receive it." Akio explains while smiling fondly at the necklace in his hand.

Verniy just stared at the necklace in wonder. She never knew that this tiny little necklace could mean so much to him. She couldn't help but feel a little giddy that he told her, but the growing sense of dread stopped her short. Nervously she glanced up at Akio, "What happened?".

Akio's face quickly sours, "The Abyssals happened." Akio trails off while reaching back up to put his necklace back on. "My father and I were a part of a JMSDF naval exercise. Things were running smoothly. It was just suppose to be another exercise." Akio trails off slightly, eyes glazed over slightly as he relives the memory. Verniy reaches over to grab his hand with her own and squeezes it slightly in comfort. Akio nods his thanks briefly before continuing, "A few hours in is when we saw her. A lone figure was standing out on the water on our way to the next set of coordinates. At the time, I had no clue who or what she was, but now I realize she was a Re-Class." Verniy gasps at this. "Before anyone realized what was happening, the JDS Onami went up in flames to my left. Just like that. The JDS Amagiri, JDS Ise, and the JS Izumo also went up in flames before we finally began to return fire. However, it became quickly apparent that the guns outfitted on the destroyers weren't enough to damage this terrifying new enemy. Our best weapon at our disposal was our air power. However, even that wasn't enough with the small amount of air support we had left after the loss of the Izumo and Ise, so my father gave the order to the rest of the surviving ships to protect and escort the JDS Kurama and JDS Hyūga back to the safety of port." Akio trails off as a stray tear slides down his cheek. "The Re-Class followed us and continued to tear us apart one by one. I had watched as my father's ship went up in flames."

Verniy reached over and wiped the tear from Akio's cheek catching his attention and surprise.

"Are you alright?" Verniy asks while cupping his cheek, regretting bringing up such a painful memory. Akio relaxes a bit at her touch and smiles at the obvious signs of worry from the normally stoic girl.

"I'm fine now. It was a long time ago." He assures her with a small smile. "Long story short, out of the 37 ships that had left for that naval exercise, only 8 had returned. It has been three years since then and I have largely gotten over it, but every year when the date comes back around, I can't help but remember that day. I'm sorry that I've made you girls worry so much, especially you Verniy."

"Все нормально." Verniy says with a smile, "But promise me you will let me try to help you the next time you're feeling like this."

Akio just laughs a little. "Alright. I promise, Verniy." with that said, Akio leans down and plants a quick kiss to the top of her head. Verniy just beams in happiness with a small blush forming on her cheeks before getting comfortable once again. Akio leans back and realizes that there is only a sliver of sun left above the sea. "Well, it looks like we missed out on most of the suns-" Akio quickly cuts himself short as he yawns due to his own exhaustion finally catching up to him. He then hears a cute, melodic giggle come from his right and finds himself gazing down at the giggling destroyer, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

"You should get some rest. You haven't slept in two days." Verniy says while sitting up straight and stretching out her legs in front of her.

"I don't know… I haven't really been able to sleep well these last few days." Akio trails off uncertainly, "And I really should work on some of my paperwork, I've been neglecting my duties as admiral these last few days."

Verniy, not liking that answer, pouts cutely in frustration before trying again, "Won't you at least lay down out here for a little bit? Your body needs the rest."

Akio could feel his resolve crumbling underneath such an adorable pout. He could never say no to her when she pouts like that, and she knows it all too well.

"Fine, fine. Just make sure to wake me up if I fall asleep." He says, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. "I still have work that I should catch up on." All he gets in response is a noncommittal hum. With a sigh and a small smile he situates himself so that he can lay down with his head on her lap. It wasn't too big of a deal to him, especially since she is only doing what she feels is best for his wellbeing. It always touched him to see how much she cared for him.

"Comfortable?" Verniy echoes Akio's earlier question.

"Yup." Akio grins while his eyes slowly drift shut. Now that he is finally laying down, what little energy he had left is slowly seeping away. He can feel Verniy's hand sliding through his hair idly as they both relax together. It was comforting. The last few days leading up to the anniversary have been rough. Memories and regrets have been plaguing his mind, but now, in this one serene moment, it was just him, Verniy, and the sound of the waves.

Suddenly a beautiful melody fills Akio's ears. Sluggishly opening his eyes he realises that Verniy is humming a gentle song. Her eyes are closed and her head is resting against the wall behind her. As the soft melody floats through the air, Akio recognizes the song as a lullaby as his eyes begin to drift closed once more and sleep begins to creep up on him.

"Cheater…" Akio mumbles one last time as sleep finally claims him. Before he drifts off he could swear that he can _feel_ the victorious smile on her face.

A few moments later the lullaby comes to close and Verniy opens her eyes once more to find Akio fast asleep with a peaceful smile on his face. Verniy can't keep the smile off her face seeing Akio looking so peaceful and content after such a long week. She brushes her hand gently through his hair a few more times as she watches him sleep. Finally though, she feels her eyes grow heavy as her own exhaustion creeps up on her. Knowing that things will be fine now, she leans down and pushes a gentle kiss onto Akio's forehead before murmuring a few words as sleep finally claims her too.

"Доброй ночи, Akio."

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Thanks for Reading! If you liked the story, It would mean the world to me if you dropped a quick review to tell me. I often lack the motivation to sit down and write, so if people enjoyed what I wrote it would really help me kick myself into gear.

 **Also, translations for any Russian words are at the top of the story in the author's notes.** Just in case anyone missed it.


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